Beyond hoops: Project ripples through athletic program

Nov. 5, 2011

Written by

Purdue fans will fill a refurbished Mackey Arena this season to watch Robbie Hummel and Brittany Rayburn star on the basketball court.

Those fans might be less familiar with hundreds of other athletes already benefiting from the $100 million project.

Wrestler Jake Fleckenstein enjoys the modern fitness center. Softball player Molly Garst utilizes the expanded sports medicine facility almost daily. Track and cross country athlete Cale Allen has seen the way recruits react to the team's refurbished locker rooms and lounge areas.

Those are just a few examples of how the Mackey Arena project will ripple throughout the athletic program.

"Obviously basketball, with the whole Mackey renovation, is the one getting attention from a national standpoint," said Allen, a senior from Fishers. "With all the facilities, everyone is directly benefiting from it in some way. It makes the whole Purdue athletic experience that much better and shows this is a top program committed to excellence."

While athletes say the workout facility at Mollenkopf Athletic Center fits their needs, finding time and space to work out as a team became an issue. The new facility at Mackey more than doubles the available training space for athletes and offers several new, modern touches.

The equipment includes titanium weights and pneumatic machines. Some stations include a computer and camera, on which athletes can record their workout and immediately critique it with a coach or trainer.

"Usually when football is going, it's football-only at Mollenkopf," said Garst, a senior shortstop from Webb City, Mo. "We're usually in (the new facility) with golf, and we don't ever interact with them. There's enough space in there that you can fit two full teams in there."

Access also is one benefit of the new sports medicine facility. More than three times larger than its predecessor, the 12,000-square-foot area eliminates waiting in line to see athletic trainers and other medical professions or to use the top-of-the-line rehab equipment.

Several athletes singled out the hydrotherapy equipment -- including hot tubs and an underwater treadmill -- as crucial upgrades for a top-flight athletic department.

"Our old sports medicine room is nice by college standards, but this one is something you see in a pro facility," Allen said.

"A big part of why I haven't been injured up to this point is because I can go in there after practice and get treatment to take care of the little things here and there."

Previously, athletes in multiple Olympic sports shared outdated locker and shower facilities. All locker rooms received a floor-to-ceiling makeover, and while there still is some sharing, the athletes say there is also a more personal touch.

Fleckenstein said some athletes were sleeping on wooden benches between workouts in the old locker rooms. Now, each team has its own lounge area, furnished with couches and plasma televisions, which the athletes say help bring the team together and improve camaraderie.

The basketball locker rooms also include a film room and kitchen area.

"Everything's finally coming together, and it's putting us on top again," Garst said.

As at most schools, football and men's and women's basketball will continue to be the marquee sports in terms of fan interest at Purdue. But other athletes say the Mackey Arena renovation shows the athletic department's dedication to all sports, regardless of revenue.

"We're going to be proud of the school anyway; we've got a lot of tradition here," Fleckenstein said. "But it's nice when a school comes in and they're looking around and they're like, 'Wow, look what they have here.' "